01-09-2023
It was in Cabeços, at the top of the municipality, that we met tailor Secundino, better known as Dino and henceforth addressed as such. At the entrance to his house, he welcomed us with hospitality. He was waiting for us in a house with a nostalgic smell and embellished by a garden full of flowers and very old trees. It was as if the landscape conformed to Dino's state of mind. We sat at the garden table and the silence was only broken by a relaxing melody. Óscar, the dog, lay down next to the table and the tailor, like the outgoing man he is, unravelled the story of his life.
Dino's story begins in Gerês, in Singeverga, at the Monastery of São Bento, where he was studying at a seminary. In addition to his studies, young Dino had to help the Franciscans with farming, cleaning and shoemaking. As he told us his stories, Dino ended up telling us that one day, while he was cleaning the bathroom, he came across some monks sewing clothes. "I saw a very large counter, full of machines and friars at work.
They made cassocks, trousers and cloaks, the Franciscan kind, with white rope", he said, adding: "I thought it was funny and a friar who was there asked me if I wanted to learn from them". So the Benedictines taught him the basics, and it was with this learning in his pocket that Dino decided to flee to Figueira da Foz, where his mother and sister lived. "The Franciscans, the Benedictines and the seminarians didn't pay for transport to get me from the seminary to the countryside, so I went to the Santo Tirso railway station. They put Singeverga - Santo Tirso - Gerês, but left a big gap between the destinations. So I wrote Figueira da Foz between them and told my superior that I was going on holiday with my mother and sister. I never went back," he revealed.
During a certain period of his life, Dino travelled around the country studying and, at the same time, working in tailor shops, having left the country to do military service in Guinea. On his return to Portugal, when he needed to find a job, the unexpected opportunity arose to open a tailoring shop in Alenquer. "When I lived in Vila Franca de Xira, I went to the pubs a lot, more specifically to the Sporting club, where I met an owner who wanted to get rid of his shop. I accepted, not least because I've loved Alenquer from day one," he explained, having kept the so-called "Dino" shop for 50 years.
Hard times in tailoring
Life has never been easy in tailoring. Dino said that the house brings with it many stories, some of which have marked him for life. One very rainy morning, there was a major disaster in the municipality. It was 1967 and the centre of Alenquer was flooded with water from the river. Dino remembers that night vividly: "It was dawn and I was sewing my sister-in-law's wedding dress. In the meantime, the water began to rise very quickly, until a car crashed into the window and the water came pouring into the shop. I thought I was going to die, the water was up to my neck. Luckily, they managed to save me in time." The scene was degrading.
Dino, who was shivering with cold, lost his materials, his dress and his space. With a deep breath and a desolate look, interlaced with a forced smile, he revealed: "I had to get on with my life and rebuild the shop." "A life of a lot of struggle," added Donzília, Dino's wife and business partner, who, over the course of the conversation, was gaining courage.
First fashion show in Alenquer
"In our opinion, it is a great honour for Alenquer that the men's fashion for 1973, now inspired by Eça de Queirós, one of the most elegant men of his time, has been dictated within its walls and, more than that, by a tailor-couturier for whom our town already counts for a lot. But it's not just Alenquer that should be proud of this, it's also the country, because by holding this event in Portugal, we are undoubtedly on a par with other countries where men's fashion has become more famous." This is an extract from an article in A Verdade, the former Nova Verdade newspaper, which describes an event that Alenquer didn't expect to see. A modelling show was something the people of Alenquerque believed they could see one day in London or Paris. "The scenery was unparalleled," said Zília with a sparkle in her eyes.
At the entrance to Jardim Vaz Monteiro, there was a long red walkway that stood out from all the other colours in the garden. "The event was scheduled for three in the afternoon, but people started arriving at midday to book their places," recalled Dino. In an atmosphere of euphoria, the garden brought together more than a thousand people. The models were putting on their final touches and getting ready to enter. The music, which at the time had to be to the regime's liking, began to play. The models paraded, spreading their charm among the audience and the clapping echoed frantically through the town. "It was Alenquer, through its tailor Dino, that dictated men's fashion for 1973, for the country and for the world," wrote an article in the newspaper A Capital.
The last measures
Dino and Zília now reach the finishing touches to their career. With the shop having been closed for a few years, the team nevertheless continued to bring small orders to life, and Fábio Matias was lucky enough to be chosen. As Dino stood up to show us the (still unfinished) suit for young Fábio, Zília told us that it was a special request that Dino couldn't refuse.
With the suit still lined up with cotton, ready to be sewn by the machine, Dino returned. And when he showed us the garment, he blurted out without hesitation that this really was his last suit. After 50 years of creating and innovating, the man who sewed Alenquer into fashion is preparing to put the machine away and watch the steam from the iron that shaped dreams, special days and unforgettable memories evaporate for the last time.